Airtight package



Aug. 18, 1953 G. TAUNTQN AIRTIGHT PACKAGE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July11, 1950 FIGJ.

FIG.2.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIGE).

G. TAUNTON AIRTIGHT PACKAGE Aug. 18, 1953 Filed July 11, 1950 FIGS.

Filed July 11,1950

3 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIGS.

FlG.l3.

Patented Aug. 18, 195?;

UNITED STATES AIRTIGHT PACKAGE Gerald Taunton, Wells, Somerset; England,assignor to Wilts-United Dairies Limited,-Wilt'-- shire, England, aBritish company Application July 11, 1950,,.Serial'N0. 173}!l71' InGreat Britain August'18, 194'9' 1 This invention relates to airtightpackages and in particular to the partial .or complete evacuation ofsuch packages.

It has already'been proposed to wrap foodstuffs and other articles inflexible airtight materials, such as Waxed sheet material or suitablecoated cellulose acetate film, and to seal the edges of the Wrapping byheat or otherwise so as toip'roduce an airtight package.

The object of the present invention is to provide a flexibleoxygen-proof container in which sealec'lpackage, for example a bag orpouch, comprises the steps of bringing the material of the package, at apart thereofwhere the inner faces of the material can be broughttogether withoutobstruction, into contact with a suction member havingan orifice therein, applying suction to said orifice, piercing anexhausting slitin the material by means of a piercing tool ,passedthrough said orifice so that air is withdrawn from the interior of thepackageby said suction member, bringing the inneriaces of the .packagingmaterial into contact with each other in the neighbourhood of saidorifice and sealing said faces together so that an airtightqseal is.effected between the interior of the packageand said exhausting slit.

The material from which the package is made may be any suitableoxygen-proof waxedsheet materiaLor a suitably coated cellulose acetatefilm, or a suitably coated regenerated cellulose film. A furthersuitable material is that known under the registered trade-mark.Pliofilm. .It

is also possible, and in many cases preferable, to

use a laminated packaging material. Thus for example a material formedfrom laminations of Pliofilm and cellulose acetate, or of polyethyleneand cellulose acetate or of Pliofilm and metal foil, may be used.

It is preferred to use a material which canbe sealed together by theapplication of heat and pressure in theknown manner. Alternatively,however, other oxygen-proof materials maybe used the faces of which tobe joined together are providedwith'a coating of pressure-sensitiveadhesive.

The invention also' includes apparatus for reducing the oxygen contentof a flexible airtight scaledpa-ckage which comprises a suction memherhaving an orifice therein against which the "packaging material may belocated, means for applying suction "to' said orifice, a piercing tooleither-"fixed or'reciprocable within said orifice to pierce anexhausting slit in said packaging material, and" sealing'meansforproviding an airtight ,seal in said packaging material between saidexhausting slitanditheinterior'of the package. Said sealing'meansmaybe aheated tool adaptedto press-the two thicknesses of'thepackaging materialtogether against said suction .memberL around the orifice therein.

The shape of the face ofthe heated tool may be varied; thus itmay becircular, triangular or polygonal. Where'it is of relatively large areait is preferable, when using waxed packaging material, to ,providegrooves in the face thereof 'to prevent the Wax frombeing drivenawayfrom the heated surfaceyfor example'the face of the heating .tool mayconsist of a number of concentric ridges.

The invention'will now'be described with reference to'theaccompanying'drawingagiven by way of. example, in which:

Figure 1 is aside elevation of apparatus accordingto theinventionfor're'ducing the oxygen content of a'flexible airtightsealed package,

FigureZ isa partialplan view'of the apparatus of Figure l with partsbroken away,

Figure-3 is a front view of the apparatus of Figure 1 with certain partsomitted,

Figure '4 is -a planv-iew of the apparatus taken --on-thelineIV-IVpfFi-gure 1 with certain parts omitted,

Figuretis a vertical sectionpon a larger scale, of the suction memberof'Figurel,

, Figure 6 is avertical section, on a larger scale, .of thesealingmember of Figure 1,

Figure? is a vertical section, "on a still larger scale, of the upperpart of the suction member ofF-igure' 5, and

'F'igures' 8' to ,1'3 illustrate steps in the formation ofa sealedpackage.

Referring'first to Figures/l to 4, a bedplate I ismountedonsuitablesupport plates -2 and is shaped. at its rear end' forthereception of a pin 3. 03 means of which a lever tispivoted to thebedplatel. The leveri-l is provided, above the pivot 3,. with an arm'i'5which carries a sealing member 6 (to be described later), the sealingmember 8 and part of the arm 5 being omitted from Figure 2 for the sakeof clarity.

Supported on the bedplate by means of four pillars l is a table 8 whichis slotted to allow movement of the lever 4 and is also provided with anaperture through which protrudes the upper end of a suction member 9 (tobe described later). Two resilient fingers ID are secured to the table 8by screws H and normally press against the table 8 for a purpose to bedescribed later.

The arm 5 is provided with a curved extension l2 carrying at its lowerend a plate l3, movement of which is permitted by the provision of aslot in the table 8. By slight counterclockwise movement of lever 4, theplate I3 is moved upwardly to raise the fingers out of engage-'- mentwith the table 8.

The suction member 9 is connected by a pipe H! to a vacuum valve I5,supported from the bedplate I by a bracket IS. The valve is providedwith a nipple H for connection to a, vacuum pump (not shown) and is alsoprovided with a release cock I8. The valve |5 also comprises a plungerl9, movement of which can be effected by means of a link 20 pivoted atone end to the plunger [9 and at the other end to the lever 4.Progressive clockwise movement of the lever 4 moves the plunger |9 toestablish communication first between the nipple I! and the pipe l4 andthen also between these and the release cock H5.

The hammer 2 I, in the form of a spring-loaded substantiallysemicircular plate, is pivoted to a bracket 22 mounted on the undersideof the bedplate I and is adapted to be actuated by a leaf spring 23adjustably mounted by means of a clamp 24 on a bar 25 one end of whichis formed as a stirrup 23 pivoted to the lever 4 and the other end ofwhich is connected to a spring 2'! (shown only in Figure 1) attached tothe bedplate I.

The bar 25 is guided between the arms of a bracket 28 mounted on theunderside of the bedplate I. The hammer 2| is provided with a notch 29in which the end of the leaf spring 23 engages upon initial clockwisemovement of the lever 4; upon further clockwise movement of the lever 4,the hammer turns in a clockwise direction until the end of the leafspring 23 is forced out of the notch 29, whereupon the hammer 2| movessharply in a counterclockwise direction under the action of its spring(shown only in Figure 1).

Referring now more particularly to Figures 5 and '7, the suction member9 comprises a lower casing 39 and an upper casing 3|, the internaldiameter of the latter being smaller than that of the former. The twocasings are provided with complementary screw-threads so that they maybe screwed together and thereby mounted on the bedplate l as indicated.The upper casing 3| is provided with an orifice 32 and the upper faceofthe casing 3| is recessed for the reception of an annular resilientfacing 33, for example of rubber.

A piercing tool 34, which in the example shown is of V-shapedcross-section, is mounted in the end of a rod 35 slidable within thesuction member 9. The rod 35 passes through an aperture in the lower endof the casing 39 and is provided at its upper end with a flange 33 whichslides within the casing 3|. The rod 35 is urged downwardly by a spring31 located between the loose collar 38 (mounted on the rod 35 andabutting against the lower end of the casing 3|) and a washer 39 whichis held in position on the rod 35 by a cotter pin 40. The casing 3|] isprovided with a nipple 4| for the attachment of the pipe |4 (Figures 1,3 and 4). The flange 3G and the loose collar 33 are provided withperforations (indicated by dotted lines). The stroke of the rod 35 may,if desired, be limited by an adjustable stop 42.

Referring to Figure 6, the sealing member 5 comprises a metallic bobbin43 into which is screwed a cylindrical metallic sealing tool 44 wherebythe sealing member 6 is held in position on the arm 5. An electricalheating element 45 is wound on the bobbin 43, suitable insulation 45being provided between the element and the bobbin and also externallyaround the element. The front face of the sealing tool 44 has a circularrecess 41 and an annular groove 48.

The invention will now be described as applied to the airtight packagingof cheese, but it will be understood that other materials or articlesmay be packaged in a similar manner.

Referring first to Figures 8 to 10, a rectangular sheet 49 (Figure 8) ofa suitable flexible packaging material, is folded about the centre lineAB and the two side edges sealed together at 53 by means of a heatedtool, such as heated rollers, in known manner (Figure 9). In this way abag is formed, the end AB of which is closed while the opposite endremains open. A wedge-shaped piece of cheese is then inserted throughthe open end of the bag until the thin end of the wedge contacts thefold AB (Figure 10); the position occupied by the cheese is indicated bydotted lines at 5 The two layers of film at the open end are sealedtogether at 52 by means of a heated tool, such as heated rollers, inknown manner. The cheese is then contained in an airtight package whichalso contains air.

The package is then laid on the bedplate (Figures 1 to 3) with thesealed end 52 lying on the table 8, the fingers l0 being raised slightlyby a small counterclockwise movement of the lever 4 and then allowed toreturn to hold the sealed end 52 firmly on the table in a position inwhich a part of the package between the seal 52 and the cheese 5|overlies the orifice in the suction member 9.

The lever 4 is then moved in a clockwise direction, and during thismovement the following sequence of operations takes place:

(1) Air is withdrawn by suction from the suction member 9 so that thelower layer 49 of the film overlying the orifice 32 of the suctionmember 9 is drawn down slightly into the orifice as shown in Figure '7.while the upper layer remains substantially fiat.

(2) The hammer 2| is cooked and released to strike the lower end of therod 35 whereby the piercing tool 34 is driven upwards to pierce anexhausting slit in the said lower layer of the film without the upperlayer being pierced, so that air is withdrawn from the package. It ispossible to regulate the stroke of the piercing tool 34 to achieve thispurpose by suitable selection of the spring loading of the hammer 2| andthe rod 35 and by adjustment of the position of the clamp 24 holding theleaf spring 23. Alternatively, and more simply, a stop 42 may beprovided on the lower end of the rod 35 as already described. TheV-shaped piercing tool 34 forms a triangular tab which is drawn open bythe suction to facilitate the evacuation of the pack- (3) 'lhe release'cock- It is brcught i-nto' coinmunication'with the pipe it so that any"desired degree of final evacuation of thep'a'ckage may be obtaineddepending on the extent'to which the release cock is opened. If desireda vacuum gauge may be connected to the pipe it to give an indication ofthe degree of evacuation.

(4) The heated sealing tool id presses on the film Q9 within the areabounded by'the resilient facing tit-and effects a sealing together'ofthe two layers 49 of film around the exhausting slit. The recess i? andthe groove 48 in the sealing tool 44 prevent wax (when a waxed materialis used for the packaging material) being driven away from the heatedsurface and thereby endangering the efficacy of the seal. Figure 11indicates the circular seal-53around the exhausting hole 54, whereby thelatter is sealed on from the interior of the package. v

It will be readily understood that, as an alternative to thecircularseal 53, it is possible to provide a seal across the end of thepackage from one side to the opposite side as indicated at 55 in Figure12 or from one side to an adjacent side as indicated at 56 in Figure 13.

Other modifications are possible in the various details hereinbeforedescribed within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

l. Apparatus for reducing the oxygen content of a flexible airtightsealed package comprising a suction member having an orifice thereinagainst which the packaging material of the sealed package may belocated, resilient fingers adapted to press on said packaging materialto hold it in pesition, means for applying suction to said orifice, apiercing tool reciprocatable within said orifice to pierce an exhaustingslit in said packaging material, sealing means for providing an airtightseal in said packaging material between said exhausting slit and theinterior of the package, and an actuating lever which upon movement inone direction lifts said fingers to permit insertion of the packagingmaterial and upon movement in the opposite direction allows said fingersto return to grip the packaging material and actuates in turn thesuction means. the piercing tool and the sealing means.

2. Apparatus for reducing the oxygen content of a flexible airtightsealed package comprising a suction member having an orifice thereinagainst which the packaging material of the sealed package may belocated, a source of suction, a valve interposed between said suctionmember and said source of suction and including a plunger, an actuatinglever, a link pivoted at one end to said lever and at the other end tosaid plunger, a piercing tool reciprocatable within said suction memberto pierce the packaging material in said orifice, a hammer, a springloaded bar pivoted to said lever, an adjustable clamp on said bar, aleaf spring clamped within said clamp, an arm on said lever and sealingmeans carried by said arm so that upon movement of said lever saidplunger is moved to establish communication between said source ofsuction and said suction member, said leaf spring actuates said hammerto strike said piercing tool to pierce an exhausting slit in saidpackaging material and said sealing means is pressed onto said packagingmaterial to efiect an airtight seal between said exhausting slit and theinterior of the package.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprising an adjustable release cockon said valve for reg- 6 ulatingthe degre' of evacuation of said packageprior "to sealing.

4. A method of reducing theaircontent ofa seams airtight sealed packageconsisting of a sheet material, comprising the steps ofapplying suctionto a portion of the sheetmaterial forming the package forseparatin'gsaid portion from the opposite wall of the package; piercingsaid portiononly so that the suction applied thereto effects an evacuation ofsaidsealed package; and-sealing an area around-said portion so as toprevent entering of air through said pierced'po'rtion';

5. A method for reducing the air content of a flexible air tight sealedpackage comprising the steps" of bringing suction member having anorifice into contact with the outer'face of a wall portion of tliepackage at a part of said package where the inner faces of said wallportion'and of an opposite wall can be directly superimposed; applyingsuction to said orifice so asto separate at said orifice only saidinner'face of saidw'all portion from saidopposite' wall; piercing a slitthrough said wall portion only by meansof a piercing tool passingthrough said orificeso that air is withdrawn from the interior of thepackage through said orifice; bringing said inner facesof said wallportion and of said opposite wallinto contact with each other in theregion of said orifice; and sealing said inner'facestogether so that anair tight seal is producedbetweenthe interior of the package and-saidslit.

6. A method as claimed in claim 5'w-h'erein said inner faces of saidwall portion and of said opposite wall are provided with-a coatingof apressure-sensitive adhesive, and wherein said sealing is carried out byapplying pressure.

'7. A method as claimed in claim 5 wherein the walls of the packagewhich are to be sealed consist of a'material which can-be sealed by theapplication-of heat, and wherein heat is applied for sealing said innerfaces.

8. Apparatus for reducing the air content of a flexible air tight sealedpackage comprising, in combination, suction member having an orificeadapted to engage a wall portion of the package; means for applyingsuction to said orifice so as to separate said wall portion from theopposite wall of the package and to hold said wall portion to saidorifice; a piercing tool arranged within said orifice movable thereinfrom a retracted position to a piercing position and adapted to piercein said piercing position said wall portion held by suction to saidorifice only, but not said opposite wall; and sealing means forproviding an air tight seal between said slit and the interior of thepackage.

9. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8 and including operating meansoperatively connected to said means for applying suction, to saidpiercing tool, and to said sealing means for consecutively actuating thesame.

10. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8 and including resilient holdingmeans for holding said package against said suction member.

11. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein said piercing tool has apoint of V-shaped cross section so as to form a triangular tab in saidwall portion.

12. Apparatus for reducing the air content of a flexible air tightsealed package comprising, in combination, suction member having anorifice adapted to engage a wall portion of the package; means forapplying suction to said orifice so as to separate said wall portionfrom the opposite wall of the package and to hold said wall portion tosaid orifice; a piercing tool arranged within said orifice reciprocabletherein from a retracted position to a piercing position and adapted topierce in said piercing position said wall portion held by suction tosaid orifice only, but not said opposite wall; means for reciprocatingsaid piercing tool; and sealing means for providing an air tight sealbetween said slit and the interior of the package.

13. An apparatus as claimed in claim 12 and including stop means forlimiting the reciprocating movement of said piercing tool.

14. Apparatus for reducing the air content of a flexible air tightsealed package comprising, in combination, suction member having anorifice adapted to engage a wall portion of the package; means forapplying suction to said orifice so as to separate said wall portionfrom the pposite wall of the package and to hold said wall portion tosaid orifice; a piercing tool arranged within said orifice movabletherein from a retracted position to a piercing position and adapted topierce in said piercing position said wall portion held by suction tosaid orifice only, but not said opposite wall; and heated tool meansarranged oppositely said orifice of said suction member, and adapted topress said opposite wall and said Wall portion together and against saidsuction member for providing an air tight seal between said slit and theinterior of the package.

15. An apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein said heated tool meansis provided with an annular sealing face formed with at least oneannular groove.

16. Apparatus for reducing the air content of a flexible air tightsealed package comprising, in

combination, suction member having an orifice adapted to engage a wallportion of the package; means for applying suction to said orifice so asto separate said wall portion from the opposite wall of the package andto hold said wall portion to said orifice; a piercing tool arrangedwithin said orifice movable therein from a retracted position to apiercing position and adapted to pierce in said piercing position saidwall portion held by suction to said orifice only, but not said oppositewall; a vacuum valve means interposed between said suction member andsaid means for applying suction; a hammer means movable between aninoperative position and a striking position striking said piercing toolfor moving the same from said retracted position to said piercingposition; sealing means for providing an air tight seal between saidslit and the interior of said package; and an operating lever connectedto said vacuum valve means, to said hammer means, and to said sealingmeans for consecutively actuating the same.

1'7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 16 wherein said vacuum valve meansincludes an adjustable release cock for regulating the degree ofevacuation of the package.

18. An apparatus as claimed in claim 16 wherein said vacuum valve meansincludes a plunger; and including a link pivoted at one end to saidplunger and at the other end thereof to said operating lever.

19. An apparatus as claimed in claim 16 including a bar pivoted to saidoperating lever; and a leaf spring adjustably mounted on said bar andconnected to said hammer means for actuating the same.

G. TAUNTON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,970,193 Riebel, Jr. Aug. 14, 1934 2,292,295 Royal Aug. 4,1942 2,387,812 Sonneborn et al. Oct. 30, 1945

